Abstract
The objectives of this study are to quantitatively analyse the influence of education, economy and religious domains on enhancing ethnic unity among youth in Malaysia with reference to university students. It involved a survey of 373 students from two Malaysian public universities, namely Universiti Malaya and the National Defence University of Malaysia. The obtained data are subjected to descriptive analysis as well as structural equation modelling (SEM) analysis. The results show all these three domains are significant in strengthening ethnic unity, and the findings of this study could contribute to the current efforts by the government in the areas of the educational system, economic policies, and religious tolerance so that a more effective approach could be introduced.
Introduction
Ethnic conflict in many countries is a perennial problem, and depending on the scale of conflict, to some extent, it could jeopardise the countries political stability, such as the conflicts in Ethiopia and South Sudan in Africa, Mindanao and South Thailand in Southeast Asia. Most policymakers and scholars attribute the problem of ethnic unity to three factors, namely education system, economic policies and religious understanding (Grzywacz, 2013). For example, the issue of ethnic unity in Cyprus before 1960 was attributed to the segregation in the education system whereby the Greek Cypriot followed the church-based education system. In contrast, the Turkish Cypriot put a strong emphasis on Islamic education. Such divisive religious education had resulted in a polarized society in which the effort to nurture the spirit of Cypriot nationalism was almost next to impossible (El-Masri, 2005). However, under the Ta’if Accord, which intended to promote cooperation and togetherness, common subjects such as language, culture and history were introduced to trigger the spirit of shared destiny (Deets and Ouaiss, 2020).
In Lebanon, the ethnic conflict is compounded by the deep sectarian schism whereby Muslims are subdivided into Sunni, Syiah Druze and Nusayri. Christians are divided into Maronites Protestants, Greek Orthodox, Greek Catholic, and Armenian Catholic (Tannous, 2018). To reduce the conflict, all these conflicting parties are put under a rigid coalition known as the National pact, whereby to soothe the conflicting demands, they proportionately distribute the critical government posts (El-Masri, 2005). Some scholars advocate for better ethnic unity in future by banking on the participation and cooperation of the youth in creating harmonious conditions in the country with fresh ideas to unwound the current deadlock without neglecting the country historical background. The perennial perplexing ethnic conflict in Liberia, Rwanda, Somalia, Sri Lanka and Sudan is difficult to resolve due to the complicated and intertwined combination of ethnicity with religion and language (Haque, 2003).
According to the International Labour Office (2020), serious attention should be given to youths due to their important contribution to future economic growth due to their active, diverse and supportive attitudes, coupled with other qualities and strength, their role in shaping the future direction of the education system and religious tolerant society is undeniable (Theocharis and Quintelier, 2014). Since youth are defined as individuals aged 15–24 years, or 15–40 years, the international community has recognised them as a positive force for providing new ideas for transformative social change and exercising their right as citizens (United Nations, 2015). Based on the above premises, this study will focus on the relationships between education, economy and religion in enhancing ethnic unity among youth, and the study was carried out in two public universities in Malaysia. This study chooses university students to represent the youth since they could inherit better positions in society in the future, thus being the agents of change in promoting ethnic unity and reducing ethnic sentiment. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to identify the link between those three variables.
Literature review and hypotheses
Ethnic unity in Malaysia
Ethnic is referred to a group of society that practices a distinct culture, norms, language, and religion and lives in a country (Shamsul, 2008). Meanwhile, unity means the union of community members in a country. Hence, in this study, ethnic unity refers to the unity and solidarity among members of society of different cultures, norms, languages, and religions to achieve the political stability of a country (Pandian, 2014). To achieve this objective, it is imperative for the government to play a key role in formulating certain policies, whether in education, economics, or religion, to promote and enhance cooperation between ethnic groups. Similar actions were introduced in Northern Ireland and Lebanon to fulfil the demand of the people for equal rights and better opportunities in the civil service for all (El-Masri, 2005; Nagle, 2017).
The multiethnic society of Malaysia comprises three main ethnic groups, namely the Malays, Chinese, and Indians. The Malays, besides being the original inhabitants of the land, also make up the majority of the population. The Chinese and Indians were brought in by the British colonial authorities in the late 1800s to work in the British-invested economic activities, mainly in tin mining and rubber plantations. At one time, the immigrant population had overwhelmed the locals, and with distinct physical outlook, culture, languages, and customs, there were bound to be frictions with the locals while competing for the cultural spaces and economic cake, and it happened both before and after independence (Roff, 1975). Before independence, the Japanese-Sino war in mainland China had moved the Chinese community in Malaya to fight against the Japanese colonial power in Malaya through an organisation called the Malayan People Anti Japanese Army (MPAJA). When the Japanese surrendered, the MPAJA took over Malaya for 14 days before the British arrived, and the Malays despised the Chinese brutality during this 14-days reign (Ongkili, 1980). However, when Malaya was seeking independence, the ethnic friction was covertly put on the back burner since, to be granted independence, the British requested the ethnic communities in Malaya cooperate with each other so that a viable country could be established.
After gaining independence, ethnic friction reared its ugly head again, and this watershed intercine conflict, known as the 13th of May 1969, took thousands of lives. The root cause of this conflict is due to ethnic propaganda drummed up by the extremist fractions in the ethnic communities. At that time, the communities had a separate education system whereby the Malays followed the Malaya syllabus and the Chinese followed the mainland China syllabus. The Chinese monopolised the country’s economic cake and the poor have-not Malays were living in villages conducting subsistent economic activities (Rahman, 1977). The government saw the conflict as the result of skewed economic distribution that favoured only certain ethnic groups, and as part of the remedial measures, a new economic policy was implemented to redistribute the country’s wealth through various actions such as rural development.
It seems this policy has successfully addressed some of the root causes of the problem, thus pacifying any significant conflict. Even though a low level of conflicts are still brewing, the authorities managed to stop them from spreading, and most of the cases are related to cultural and religious issues, such as parading a cow head in front of a Hindu temple in Shah Alam or throwing a pig head into a mosque compound in Lembah Pantai Kuala Lumpur (Ramli et al., 2011). Due to a lack of a tolerant attitude, this low level of conflict could be a result of several reasons, such as unhappiness with the location of the house of worship, economic disparity, and unemployment (Teik, 2018). One of the structural problems that could contribute to the lack of ethnic tolerance in Malaysia is the segregation of the education system, whereby up to the age of 12 years old, each ethnic group goes to their respective vernicular schools. The Malay students attend the national school, whereas the Chinese and Indians go to their Chinese school and Indian school, respectively. Thus, the students are denied the opportunity to know and mingle with each other at their tender age (Haque, 2003; Petru, 2018).
Due to the persistant presence of this low level of ethnic conflict, a Malaysian sociologist, Shamsul (2008), described the situation of ethnic relations in the country as being in a state of “stable tension”, which means the current stability could be jeopardised if any ethnic group provokes ethnic sentiment excessively or in an extreme manner. Therefore, in order to avoid reaching that particular level, Malaysians are reminded by the government at all times of the need to be tolerant and promote multiethnic cooperation (Talib et al., 2019). So far, the government’s approach to instilling the spirit of tolerance, cooperation, and consensus among the ethnic groups has been successful in maintaining peace and stability in the country (Janmaat and Keating, 2017). According to Sevinc (2019), if a government put an emphasis on three principles, namely national identity views, principle-based views, and joint activity views, the country would be able to achieve social unity and solidarity much better since it would provide space for the people to voice their opinions in an effort to create a harmonious situation via education, economy, and religion. However, the government needs to monitor those relationships in order to avoid any negative perception that the government is favouring certain ethnic groups.
Hence, the effort to strengthen ethnic unity in a multiethnic society was hugely momentous as a means to elevate ethnic sentiment and conflict. Therefore, to achieve those objectives, three variables, which are education, economics, and religion, have been found to have significantly influenced ethnic unity among youth in this country.
The relationship between education and ethnic unity among youth
Education could be defined as the process of imparting and acquiring knowledge to develop human intellect and self-confidence. It plays an important role in strengthening ethnic unity and national development (Heyneman and Todoric-Bebic, 2000). Through a national education system, inter-ethnic interactions are able to take place efficiently and harmoniously, especially at school and institute levels (Hjerm et al., 2018).
The formation of an effective national education system in a multi-ethnic country is dependent on the wisdom of the government. One of the objectives should be to foster ethnic unity in political, economic, and even social development regardless of religion and ethnicity (OECD, 2019). This is because a uniform national education system is able to produce a national identity, thus strengthening ethnic unity (Ya’acob et al., 2011). The failure of the government to establish a national education system will expose society to misunderstandings and require an uphill effort to invite cooperation and consensus. In Lebanon, for example, one of the main problems in creating national identity is due to elements of sectarianism in the education system (Baytiyeh, 2016).
In order to strengthen ethnic unity, some countries' educational policies extend beyond school students to include youth. For example, the European Union has formulated an education policy with the aim of maintaining cooperation and integration among European Union members (Cankaya and Cebeci, 2015). The main objective is to create a good domestic labour market and an efficient economic system without compromising societal harmony (Besgul, 2013). In Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, education policies are more focused on social and economic factors in order to create a fair and harmonious community (Cankaya and Cebeci, 2015). Similarly, in Indonesia, where civic education policy has been implemented in every university to instil the spirit of patriotism and nationalism as enshrined in the Indonesian Constitution, known as Pancasila (Nurdin, 2017). In Lebanon, to foster ethnic unity among the sectarians, civic education was introduced, which covers the topics of civil laws, civil behaviors, nationalism, human rights education, and national identity (Baytiyeh, 2016).
Meanwhile, in Malaysia, through the country’s Education Development Plan (2013–2025), the use of the national language in the national education system has been strengthened to enhance unity among students. In addition, the Department of National Unity and Integration has introduced cross-cultural programmes such as the Rukun Negara Club among the university’s multi-ethnic students to promote their interactions and understanding (Paramasivam, 2019). The programme was found to have successfully raised youth awareness about the importance of demonstrating skills such as interacting, tolerating, and working with people of different ethnicities (Awang et al., 2019). Furthermore, the introduction of General Studies (MPU) courses in all institutions of Higher Learning (IPT), such as Political Studies and Appreciation of Ethics and Civilization, has been able to educate students to be open and mature in socialising and being competitive at the international level (Ng and Harahap, 2017).
There is a significant relationship between education and ethnic unity among youth in Malaysia.
The relationship between economic factor and ethnic unity among youth
The term “economy” refers to a particular aspect of human behaviour, namely the desire to make the best possible use of limited resources in order to meet a wide range of requirements (National Bank of Belgium, 2014). In a study of the effect of economic disparity on ethnic violence, Tolga (2012) found that if economic redistribution is high, there is less likely for the ethnic conflict taking place. During the pre-genocide period in Rwanda, despite constituting only 15% of the population, the Tutsi community controlled a significant portion of economic activities, particularly in the private sector (Storey, 1999). Nelson (1998), economic grievances, conditions, and trends are often important factors in civil conflicts, including conflicts among ethnic groups. The effects of economic pressures on conflict are mediated through a wide array of intervening and interacting variables, including perceptions of fairness, expectations of improvement, group solidarity, and capacity and resources for collective action. Gåsste (2020) conclusively shows that an increase in economic inequality among the ethnic group will increase domestic terrorism.
Economic policies implemented in a country will not only affect the process of modernization, industrialization, and urbanization but will also change the socio-economic structure of a country, as happened in Malaysia after the events of May 13, 1969, whereby economic disparity was singled out as the cause of the conflict (Aziz, 2012). Through the formulation of the New Economic Policy of 1971 (Awang et al., 2015), the government has succeeded in eradicating poverty in multi-ethnic societies and restructuring employment and business control more proportionately without regard to ethnic group. This policy has also opened up opportunities for youths to get involved in entrepreneurship to reduce unemployment (Nguyen et al., 2019). It also increased national income (Bakry et al., 2019). For example, the University of Malaya has implemented an entrepreneurship program for students through the introduction of basic entrepreneurship courses and entrepreneurship co-curricular activities. It aims to nurture the students’ interests and expose them to areas of entrepreneurship and business that can be ventured into regardless of ethnic and religious differences. Besides, it also fosters entrepreneurial and business collaboration among students, by establishing entrepreneurship centres in the university to provide business advice and methods of collaboration that can be implemented with various private sectors (Hamidon and Ali, 2016).
The same was true in Cyprus when the government had to re-examine national economic policies to adapt to the situation of post-war society (Efthymiou, 2019). Fair economic distribution is vital in helping to improve the economy as well as safeguarding the rights and welfare of the people. Through this approach, a country will be able to build ethnic unity and avoid inter-ethnic hatred sentiments that can harm the country (Han and Han, 2020).
In a multi-ethnic country, the attitude of ethnic tolerance plays a major role in increasing economic productivity, and the involvement of youths from different ethnic groups is important since it can improve the country’s economy and strengthen ethnic unity (Harris and Han, 2019). According to Tsekeris et al. (2015), the failure of the government in Greece to solve economic problems has caused many youths to experience emotional and psychological stress, thus threatening inter-ethnic unity. The imbalance in economic distribution is also capable of increasing the level of unemployment in the country, especially among the youth, which in turn can lead to inter-ethnic conflict (Cheong et al., 2009; Soylu et al., 2018). For example, in Jordan, the imbalance in economic activity has had an impact on youth unemployment and, as a consequence, has posed a serious threat to the country’s political stability (Al-Habees and Abu Runman, 2012). A similar situation is happening in Nigeria, and according to Shimfe and Wajim (2020), the prevailing ethnic conflict in Takum LGA of Taraba State shows that young people are seeking material achievement and survival through any possible means, including ethnic tension.
There is a significant relationship between the economy and ethnic unity among youth in Malaysia.
The relationship between religion and ethnic unity among youth
According to James (1902), religion is the feelings, acts, and experiences of individual men in their solitude, so far as they apprehend themselves to stand concerning whatever they may consider the divine. Meanwhile, Durkheim (1915) defined religion as a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things and the self-validation of society through myth and ritual. The concept of divinity and scripture, which is the basis of faith, is the core of human relations with divine values. It has become symbolic and supernatural meaning to people and moral rules, which influence the relationship between society and social institutions more effectively (Beckford, 1990). There is a substantial nexus between religion and ethnic groups in which religion has been the focal point of group coherence and defence of group interest. To some extent, differences in religion could be the source of ethnic conflict. This can be seen in the clash between Protestants and Unionists in Northern Ireland (Nagle, 2017).
In a multi-ethnic country, religious conflicts are more likely to occur when the religious boundary coincides with ethnic boundaries, such as in Malaysia, where most Malays are Muslim, most Chinese are Buddhist, and most Indians are Hindus. Nigeria is a country with a population of around 150 million and is a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-religious, and heterogeneous country (Ejikeme, 2016). Religious clashes between Muslims, Christians and several other religious followers have left the community feeling insecure and helpless, as a result of more than 50 ethnoreligious clashes left 100,000 people dead with property worth billions of Naira was damaged around 1976 to 2009. In fact, according to Ezemenaka (2021), youths in Nigeria are willing to use violence against individuals who oppose their beliefs and religions due to their grievances over political rights, cultural rights, religious rights, and minority rights that the government has not met. Meanwhile, in Europe, youth religious awareness is growing as they begin to feel a sense of belonging in their ethnic-religious identities and begin to comprehend their respective countries' religious turmoil.
The issue of religion is one of the critical factors in ethnic relations in Malaysia. For instance, the attitude of openness in accepting religious diversity has been provoked by using social media to trigger insults to specific religions (Mohd Nor, 2011). Such an attitude is dangerous and uncalled for because it easily triggers a more aggressive reaction, especially among more aggressive youth when faced with sensitive issues. Such conflicts also occur due to insufficient understanding of the teachings of religion among ethnic groups, even though every religion teaches human beings to do good and avoid persecution. For example, Buddhism insists that the ideal life is for those who always cherish tolerance. Hinduism also strongly opposes acts of violence in social life (Mokhlis, 2006).
Similarly, Islam forbids Muslims from caucus arguments with adherents of other religions except to encourage them to adopt Islam with politeness, good words, good manners, and an excellent example. In social life, the appreciation of noble values such as tolerance and mutual respect is emphasized in most religions, such as Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, and even Buddhism. It can maintain harmony and avoid conflict in social life, especially among youths. Some argue that religion-based ethnic conflict can be reduced if each race emphasises tolerance with other ethnic groups and respects religious differences (Husin et al., 2020). Understanding the importance of recognizing freedom of religion or beliefs and human rights has successfully protected human rights and improved ethnic unity (Green and Toft, 2018). Therefore, cooperation between different ethnic groups and religious affiliations is vital to reach a consensus and reduce the feelings of prejudice and curb religious conflict (Zulkefli et al., 2018).
In Malaysia, the education system also plays an important role in strengthening ethnic unity by providing activities such as interfaith dialogue (Mazhisham and Khalid, 2015). For example, the television program “Interfaith Dialogue Harmony” has succeeded in attracting youth to understand and get to know closely different ethnic cultures, and these activities are encouraged among students at the university level (Rahman, 2021). In addition, the appreciation of the value of unity among students of different religions and cultures has been well-emphasized by the educators. According to Zaid et al. (2014), the issue of religion can indeed trigger inter-ethnic conflict, but this can be overcome if the teaching staff in schools and universities act as socialisation agents that strengthen relationships among students of different religions and cultures. In addition, the subjects of religion and moral education in schools should be able to shape the personalities of students, which includes emotional, intellectual, spiritual, and physical aspects in line with the National Education Philosophy. The syllabus also contains components that can strengthen racial unity and national harmony (Salleh and Khahar, 2016). Thus, the national education system has indirectly inculcated the values of peace and mutual respect between different ethnic communities (Reddy and Selvanathan, 2020).
There is a significant relationship between religion and ethnic unity among youth in Malaysia.
Methods
Sample size and data collection procedures
This research selected 373 social science second-year students from two public universities, Universiti of Malaya and the National Defence University of Malaysia were selected to participate in this study. These two universities were chosen based on the ethnic diversity of their student populations. These two universities are located in the Klang Valley, which has a diversified population. Before the survey form was distributed to 373 respondents, the researcher first conducted a briefing to explain the information in the form and obtain consent from all the respondents.
In this research, two methods of data analysis were applied, which are descriptive analysis and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) analysis. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26 was used to analyze the frequency of respondents’ demographic percentage. In order to analyze the hypotheses of the relationship, SEM. SmartPLS version 3.3 was applied. The software can integrate parts of analytical factors and regression, allowing for a convertible test on the link between the variables (Hair et al., 2017). As for the measurement model, convergent validity and discriminant validity were carried out. The findings of the path coefficient testing were used to validate the link between the researched variables. Furthermore, the coefficient of determination (R2 value) refers to the level of fit to measure the model’s predictive accuracy, ranging from 0 to 1. There are three levels to determine the structural model’s strength: substantial level with a value of 0.75, moderate level with a value of 0.5, and weak level with a value of 0.25.
Data analysis
Respondent demography.
This table showed 373 responders, comprising 161 (43.16%) males and 212 (56.84%) females. Meanwhile, 46 respondents (12.33%) aged between 18–20 years, 279 respondents (74.80%) aged between 21–23 years old, 29 respondents (7.77%) aged 24–26, and 19 respondents (5.1%) aged 27 years old and above. Respondents came from two universities: the University of Malaya (214 students, 57.37%) and the National Defence University of Malaysia (159 students, 42.63%). Malays make up the majority of respondents, accounting for 316 (84.72%), followed by Chinese (16.29%), Indians (18.83%), and others (23.17%). In terms of religion, 331 (88.74%) respondents were Muslims, 13 (3.46%) Buddhist, Hindu, and Christians, and there were 14 (3.75%) respondents for each religion and 1 (0.3%) respondents for other religions. In terms of primary school type, 339 respondents (90.88%) went to national schools, 32 respondents (8.5%) went to national-type schools, and two (0.54%) went to other primary schools. For the secondary school category, 314 respondents (84.18%) attended national secondary schools, eight respondents (2.14%) attended national-type secondary schools, 24 respondents (6.43%) attended religious secondary schools, and 27 respondents (7.24%) attended another type of secondary school. Finally, respondents are classified into three groups based on their origins: 95 (25.47%) were from rural areas, 241 (64.61%), and 37 (9.92%) were from urban areas.
Measures
The first part of the questionnaire contained questions about ethnic unity and the relationship between education, economy and religion with ethnic unity. The score for each element constructed in this questionnaire was measured using Likert’s scale of 5, where the scale was within the range of 1-strongly disagree, 2-disagree, 3-neutral, 4-agree, and 5-strongly agree. The use of standard scales, such as the Likert scale, is suitable for the study of social sciences (Hair et al., 2017).
Education
Education was measured using a 9-item scale based on the works of Zulkefli et al. (2018), Nurdin (2017), and Cankaya and Cebeci (2015). Among examples of the items are “National education system could enhance national development”, “The use of English and Malay Language in the educational syllabus is capable of strengthening the racial unity,” “Ethnic relations syllabus could reduce ethnic schism” and “Religious and moral education in national school can foster racial unity.” The reliability testing is 0.900 for this variable, and it is valid because the value is more than 0.7 (Hair et al., 2017).
Economy
Education was measured using a 9-item scale based on the works of Zulkefli et al. (2018), Nurdin (2017), and Cankaya and Cebeci (2015). Among examples of the items are “National education system could enhance national development,” “The use of English and Malay Language in the educational syllabus is capable of strengthening the racial unity,” “Ethnic relations syllabus could reduce ethnic schism” and “Religious and moral education in national school can foster racial unity.” The reliability testing is 0.900 for this variable, and it is valid because the value is more than 0.7 (Hair et al. 2017).
Religion
Religion was measured using a 10-item scale based on the works of Husin et al. (2020), Green and Toft (2018), Muda et al. (2018) and Nur Farhana and Khadijah (2013). Items include, for example, “All religions teach respect for various ethnicities,” “Different religious understandings could avoid ethnic conflicts,” “I feel comfortable to eat together with my non-fellow ethnic friends” and “I always respect followers of other religions.” The reliability testing is 0.940 for this variable and it is valid because the value is more than 0.7 (Hair et al., 2017).
Ethnic unity
Ethnic unity was measured using a 15-item scale based on the works of Sevinc (2019), Talib et al. (2019), Nagle (2017) and Nagaraj et al. (2015). Among the items are: “The usage of national language could strengthen solidarity and national unity,” “Every religion advocates a peaceful societal system,” “I am confident that by working in a company owned by an ethnic of not my ethnic could strengthen national unity.” The reliability testing is 0.921 for this variable and it is valid because the value is more than 0.7 (Hair et al., 2017)
Results
The results of convergent and discriminant validity analysis.
The cross-section value of each item in the study’s constructs was greater than 0.7, suggesting that the items had reached the loading factor’s level, and the Average Variance Extracted (AVE) value was greater than 0.5, indicating that the study’s constructs had met the convergent validity criterion. Following that, the item’s reliability is tested by calculating the composite reliability and the Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient. According to the findings of the factor exploration research, both reliability tests are above the value of 0.8, indicating that the measuring scale has a high level of internal consistency. The heterotrait-monotrait ratio (HTMT) of correlations is used to calculate the total number of correlations between variables. The HTMT method is a conjecture about what the accurate correlation between two constructs would be if they were measured precisely (Figure 1). The model of strengthening ethnic unity based on Youth’s perceptions in Malaysia.
The result of factor loadings for different constructs and construct reliability.
Outcomes of testing SmartPLS path model.
*Note: Significant at *t > 1.96; ** t > 2.58; ***t > 3.29.
Model’s robustness based on the value R2 = >0.75 (substantial); >0.50 (moderate); >0.25 (weak).
Selection Bias
The research aims to explore the relationship between education, economy and religion in enhancing ethnic unity among youth in Malaysia, which is driven by the hypotheses stated above. Therefore, we should address two sources of bias. The first bias is acquiescence bias, which is also known as friendliness bias. This bias occurs when a respondent demonstrates a tendency to be positive about whatever the question is. To reduce the acquiescence bias, we tend to spend some time with every respondent explaining the questions to receive the respondent’s true point of view. The second source of bias is confounding due to social desirability bias, and it involves respondents answering questions in a way that they think will lead to them being accepted and liked. This includes demographic information on races, age, religion, type of primary and secondary school attended and their origins. To minimize the bias, we took respondents from two universities that had the same age range, which matched the youth community.
Discussion
The significance of the influence of education, economics and religion in enhancing ethnic unity and solidarity had been discussed by many researchers (Ezemenaka, 2021; Heyneman and Todoric-Bebic, 2000; Hjerm et al., 2018; Tsekeris et al., 2015) and this includes certain scholars that examined the effect of civic education policies on students’ spirit of nationalism (Nurdin, 2017). However, research on the influence of education, economics and religion towards enhancement ethnic unity among youth has not been presented by any researchers.
The findings of this study clearly show that the education system, economic policies, and religious understanding all have a positive impact on ethnic unity among Malaysian youth. This could be due to the government’s policy whereby all policies are centered towards the strengthening of ethnic unity since the beginning of independence until now, and the action also coincides with the concept of human security, including personal security, community security, food security, health security, environmental security, and political security, so that the stability of the country will be guaranteed (Gasper and Gómez, 2015).
In education, the government introduced the Razak Report in 1956 and later the Rahman Talib Report in 1960 to protect the education systems of all ethnic groups and at the same time strengthen ethnic unity through the national education system (Jamil and Raman, 2012). Meanwhile, under the Malaysia Education Development Plan 2013–2025, ethnic unity is the main goal of the national education system, which emphasizes the value of respecting ethnic diversity from primary to secondary level (Chepkuto et al., 2014). To strengthen the close relationship between ethnic groups, general courses such as Asian Civilization and Ethnic Relations have been made compulsory for every university student, both in Public Institutions of Higher Learning and Private Institutes of higher learning. These courses are intended to educate students about ethnocentrism, preconceptions, and prejudices among them (Mahmad, 2018). According to Basir et al. (2020), the study’s findings revealed that these general courses increased university students’ or youth’s understanding of each ethnic group’s history, customs, language, and religion, as well as their sense of mutual respect for one another. With the aim of strengthening ethnic unity, the government has also upheld Bahasa Melayu as the national language as the main language of inter-ethnic communication, thereby making the Malay language the sole official language in 1967. The use of the Malay language has been successful in enhancing national unity among university students, and it will not instil racism among those ethnic groups who still prefer to speak their mother tongue language (Ya’acob et al., 2011).
The findings also confirm that economic factors also play an essential role in strengthening ethnic unity among youth, and this is closely related to the policies put forward by the government. For example, the main objective of the new economic policy is to create harmony between ethnic groups by having an equitable share of the economic cake so that the link between wealth and ethnicity can be broken. Besides, this policy is also meant to decrease the association between ethnicity and occupation and enhance economic participation among the have-nots of Bumiputera in entrepreneurship (Nagaraj et al., 2015). In addition, one of the government’s strategies to avoid any ethnic conflict is by providing economic opportunities, especially to the youth, whereby they are urged to get involved in businesses provided by Small and Medium (SME) Development to enable them to start businesses in certain fields (Armanurah et al., 2007). Several schemes have been introduced to increase skills in entrepreneurship and vocational skills for unemployed youths to start up new businesses. Meanwhile, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Institutes have been tasked to improve the skills of technical fields to enable them to get employment opportunities (Au Yong, 2019; Othman et al., 2012).
Religion also plays a major role in strengthening ethnic unity among the youth, and the government’s action in protecting religious rights as enshrined in the constitution by Article 11 is in line with the concept of human security because it appears to be comprehensive enough to ensure religious freedom for Malaysia’s diverse community and maintain unity in multi-ethnic societies (Zulkefli et al., 2018). Efforts to foster a spirit of tolerance and mutual respect for religions have been supported by the presence of numerous academic and civil society groups working on interfaith dialogue to discuss freedom of religion or belief and human rights. Although this dialogue is also experiencing challenges from various internal and regional forces, it was successfully overcome with the involvement of all levels of society, including the youth, and many believe that promoting dialogue at the grassroots level plays an essential role in bridging gaps between individuals of different religious backgrounds (Green and Toft, 2018).
The religious understanding among the youth is improving through courses in religious and moral studies from school to university, especially on the need to be tolerant and understand other ethnic groups. According to Muda et al. (2018), youth show a positive attitude towards strengthening ethnic unity due to the values of religious tolerance they have learned. Although it is not specified in religious principles, religion has traditionally been seen as an “associate” in promoting ethnic tolerance (Zulkefli et al., 2018). In fact, most multi-ethnic countries tend to promote freedom of religion since no single interest group wants to be subjected to another person’s vision of an ideal society. However, on the issue of religious freedom, every ethnic group, including youths, needs to emphasize religious tolerance, which is mutual respect for other religions, to avoid discrimination and prejudice in religious affairs. To strengthen religious tolerance, the government has given official public holidays to celebrate significant religious festivals, including Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, and Christians (Husin et al., 2020).
Conclusion and recommendation
This study has provided additional support to scholars working on the role of the government in strengthening ethnic unity among youth from the perspectives of education, economics, and religion. Every policy put forward by the government should be in line with the concept of human security, which emphasizes the right of people to live in harmony and dignity, be free from poverty, enjoy their rights and develop their potential. Furthermore, the role of the government as a security provider to the community can be enhanced by encouraging youths from different ethnic groups to work together.
Firstly, the findings prove the government’s policies in the fields of economy, education, and religion have had a significant relationship in ethnic unity among the youth. They feel their rights as citizens are preserved, and, under the New Economic Policy, the government has managed to reduce poverty and restructure the country’s economy. It affected everybody regardless of their religious affiliation and ethnicity. Although the government’s goal was to help Bumiputra youth, who are relatively backward in the economic field, compared to non-Bumiputra youth, its main objective is to create political stability, which in the end will benefit all ethnic groups (Au Yong, 2019).
As for education, the findings of the study illustrate that the government has emphasized the issue of ethnic unity through the values of integration in the syllabus and curriculum. In addition, to avoid ethnic conflict due to unemployment and inequality in employment, the technical and vocational education systems have been introduced to the youth as a practice-oriented method of preparing them for professions. According to Bakar and Hanafi (2007), the technical training institute was a successful approach in order to equip youth with adequate employability skills to enter the world of work. Besides, the government has introduced various programs to address the unemployment problem, such as the Industrial Training Scheme, the MSC Malaysia Undergraduate Apprenticeship and Development Program and Structured Internship Program to expose jobs in the industry to students (Bernama, 2017).
Besides, the findings on religion indicate that it greatly influences enhancing ethnic unity among the youth. Government policies in emphasizing freedom of religion have led to the establishment of religious organisations among youth, such as the Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia, the Malaysian Hindu Youth Organization, and Malaysia’s Young Buddhist Associations. Although these organizations adhere to different religious values, from the concept of divinity, they share the same goal, which is to maintain peace and unity in society. Creating a strong sense of common or shared values is vital for holding a culture together in unity since these shared values can contribute to shaping national identity. As a result of the close ties between the government and the people, Malaysia has managed to be ranked as the 29th most peaceful country in the world and the 5th most peaceful country in the Asia Pacific region (Peace, 2017).
Footnotes
Acknowledgements
The researchers wish to offer our gratitude for the opportunity extended by the Trust Fund of Research and Innovation Management Centre (RIMC), National Defence University of Malaysia (NDUM) and the Ministry of High Education of Malaysia for Fundamental Research Grant Scheme 2018- (FRGS/1/2018/SS10/UPNM/01).
Declaration of conflicting interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by the Research and Innovation Management Centre (RMC), National Defence University of Malaysia (NDUM) and the Ministry of High Education of Malaysia for Fundamental Research Grant Scheme 2018- (FRGS/1/2018/SS10/UPNM/01).
